Grief
by Claire Silverfall
Summary: After the crippling badger attack, the survivors are left to pick up the pieces. Loss can make separate hearts grow so much closer. Crack; slash. BrackenRain. AU. Rated for mild violence/mild gore and character death.
1. Prologue

******Grief**

******_WARNING : THIS STORY INVOLVES SLASH (I.E, MALE/MALE RELATIONSHIPS). IF YOU DISLIKE SLASH, CLICK THE BACK BUTTON NOW._**

**Here goes my first multi-chapter story! I'm not sure how often I'll be updating it, but I'll see how I do. This story has a main pairing of BrackenRain, with a hint of AshSoot and potentially other pairings. And yes, I'm fully aware that BrackenRain is possibly the weirdest pairing ever dreamed up. By the way, this story is AU with a possibility of spoilers for _Sunset_ on.  
**

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"Sorreltail, no!"

Rainwhisker looked up from the gash on his flank when he heard the anguished yowl, wincing as he rushed over to the broad-shouldered tom. As soon as he saw what had distressed the golden-furred tom, he wished he had never looked.

"S-sorrel…" the dark-furred warrior whispered, staring in horror at the sight in front of him. There lay a lithe tortoiseshell body, eyes hollow and clouded, mouth gaping in a silent scream. Blood pooled between her legs, and her once-bloated stomach looked oddly deflated. A large gash was torn in the back of her neck, blood crusting around the wound.

His gaze flickered to his sister's mate, whose side was also dripping with blood. He wondered if the other tom had been here, had had to watch as Sorreltail died.

"A-are the badgers gone?" a small voice mewed hoarsely from near the back of the den. The smoky gray tom turned to see Cinderpelt hunched in a dark corner of the medicine den. The older she-cat crawled out of her hiding place, injured leg dragging behind her. She stopped short when she saw Sorreltail's body.

Brackenfur rounded on his sister, staggering slightly as he favored his wounded side. "You!" he snarled in rage. "You let Sorreltail die! You didn't even try to save her! You should have died instead of her!"

The blue-eyed she-cat opened her mouth to reply, but the golden-furred tom turned and stormed out of the den.

Rainwhisker shot an apologetic look at Cinderpelt, then gave his sister's body one last glance before following the senior warrior out of the den. He noted by the trail of blood on the ground that Brackenfur should have stayed in the medicine den to have his own wound treated, but figured the other tom first wanted to tell Firestar the news. He didn't get far, however, before a pale gray speckled tom blocked his path.

"Rainwhisker," Ashfur panted, struggling to get his breath, "You don't know where Sootfur is, do you?"

The smoky gray tom cocked his head. "No," he meowed, "I haven't seen him since before… before the badgers came."

His half-brother looked concerned, before darting off to where Brambleclaw was sitting. The gray warrior worriedly noticed a deep gash in the senior warrior's side, but instead walked away to spread the news of Sorreltail's death.

Suddenly, he heard another anguished yowl. His heart plummeted when he heard the pale gray tom's grief-stricken wail.

"Sootfur!"

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**For clarification on Ashfur's relationship with Sootfur, read Kari Kurofai's _Glass Fire Curse_. It also explains what happened between Ashfur talking to Rainwhisker and him discovering that Sootfur is dead. In chapter 10 of _Glass Fire Curse,_ imagine that Ashfur talks to Rainwhisker in between talking to Squirrelflight and Brambleclaw.  
**


	2. Chapter 1

**Grief_  
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**_WARNING : THIS STORY INVOLVES SLASH (I.E, MALE/MALE RELATIONSHIPS). IF YOU DISLIKE SLASH, CLICK THE BACK BUTTON NOW._**

**Here's the next chapter of Grief, much sooner than I thought it would be. Just so you know, at this point Brackenfur and Rainwhisker are barely even friends. This story is probably going to be pretty slowly paced, so don't expect them to become mates any time in the next few chapters. I do want to know, though, if you think I should include a lemon (sex scene) in this story when the time comes? Please tell me in the reviews, and enjoy!  
**

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"Rainwhisker… Rainwhisker, it's time to bury their bodies. You need to go get some sleep."

The gentle mew flooded his ears, but Rainwhisker was not comforted by it. He looked blearily up at the cat who had spoken and saw a fluffy gray she-cat with crystal blue eyes.

"No, just a little longer…" he groaned, "Cinderpelt, you can't take them yet."

He looked over to see Brambleclaw similarly trying to drag Ashfur away from Sootfur's body. His half-brother protested strongly, and the dark gray tom wondered how close Ashfur and Sootfur had been without his noticing.

Cinderpelt licked the younger tom comfortingly on the shoulder. "Rainwhisker, I know that you're upset, and you certainly have more reason to be than the rest of us. After all, all of your family is gone now, I understand that… I don't know what I would do if Brackenfur died, but you need to keep living. Sorreltail and Sootfur wouldn't want you to lay around moping for the rest of your life, they would want you to move on and be happy. If not for the Clan, at least do this for them."

Rainwhisker nodded mutely, slowly rising to his feet. As he stood, he swore he saw the faint outlines of his two siblings nodding in approval, just past the horizon. "Thank you, Cinderpelt," he meowed gratefully.

_Sootfur, Sorreltail,_ he mouthed silently to the figures in the distance, _Thank you… I think I can go on without you, as long as I know that you're watching over me._ A tiny smile crossed his face as he watched the StarClan warriors pad off into the morning sunlight, leaving a sprinkling of stars that faded quickly where their pawsteps fell. He stood taller, stretching his cramped legs, as he looked around the camp.

"Oh, and Rainwhisker?" the medicine cat meowed, "Can you get Brackenfur up for me? He… he won't even acknowledge me…"

The sadness evident in the usually cheerful, if not a bit sharp, she-cat's mew made the gray warrior's heart go out to her. "Sure," he agreed with a small nod.

Cinderpelt nodded in reply. "Thanks," she meowed as she turned to walk away, injured leg dragging in the dirt behind her.

After the she-cat had left, Rainwhisker turned and padded over to the golden-brown tom curled around Sorreltail's body. "Brackenfur," he mewed softly, so as not to startle the other tom, "You need to get up now… the elders are going to bury the bodies."

The senior warrior looked up at the younger tom from his mate's body. His eyes hardened as they left the tortoiseshell pelt. "No," he growled angrily, lashing his tail at the other warrior.

"You can't just lay there for the rest of your life," the gray tom pointed out, trying to be patient with the grieving cat.

The golden-furred tom hissed, "Watch me." His lashing tail hit the younger tom's flank a couple of times, making Rainwhisker wince as it touched a wound on his side.

As the pain from his untended wounds began to overwhelm the gray warrior, the usually calm tom's patience began to run thin. "Brackenfur, we know you're sad. We all are! That doesn't give you any reason to just lay around and feel sorry for yourself!" he meowed sharply, repeating what Cinderpelt had told him.

Brackenfur retorted angrily, "No other cat's kits or mate just died, none of them have any idea!"

"Look, I know you lost your mate and kits! But we've all lost, every single one of us! Dustpelt and Ferncloud, they've had three of their kits die, but they moved on! Graystripe lost his first mate and both kits, but do you see him moping around all day? No! He got over himself! And me, look at me! Look at me, Brackenfur! My mother is gone, my father is gone, now Sootfur and Sorreltail are gone! I have no one! No one!" As he spat angrily at the older tom, Rainwhisker's resolve to be strong for his deceased siblings dissolved. The world began to blacken before the gray tom's eyes, and he soon crumpled to the ground with a dull thud. Brackenfur stared, remaining silent.

Cinderpelt rushed out of her den at the sound of the younger tom collapsing. She nudged the dark-furred tom and, finding no response, called for Leafpool. "Leafpool, can you come here? Rainwhisker collapsed, bring him into my den."

Rainwhisker attempted to speak, but found that he couldn't move his jaws. He tried to open his eyes, but they felt as if they were stuck with honey. He was frozen, paralyzed; he could not move.

_Am I dead?_ He thought fearfully.

Suddenly, he looked up and found that he could move. He was no longer in the ThunderClan camp; instead he was seemingly floating in a star-filled sky. A pale gray tom padded down before him.

"S-sootfur?" he stammered.

Sootfur smiled kindly at his brother. "Do not worry, brother. You are not yet dead; it is not yet your time to join us in the stars."

Rainwhisker cocked his head, puzzled. "Then, why…?" he meowed curiously.

The starry tom ignored his question. "It is almost time for you to return to the Clan. But first, there is someone who wishes to see you."

At that, a tortoiseshell she-cat padded sown from the stars, three tiny kits scampering at her feet. She smiled when she saw her brother. "Rainwhisker, meet my kits - Molekit, Poppykit, and Honeykit."

Molekit was a dusky brown tom with golden eyes, tabby stripes, and broad shoulders like his father. He was considerably larger than his sisters. Poppykit was a slender tortoiseshell she-cat with white patches and blue eyes, like Rainwhisker's own. Honeykit was a small, light brown tabby she-cat with eyes like her sister's.

The dark grey tom smiled at his sister. "They're beautiful, it's a shame their father never got to meet them."

At the mention of Brackenfur, Sorreltail's eyes swam with warmth and concern. "He isn't taking my death well, is he?" she asked sadly.

"No," her brother replied, "He blames Cinderpelt for not having saved you. When I blacked out, he hadn't moved from your body."

The tortoiseshell she-cat formed a sad smile. "I was afraid of that… Rainwhisker, I need you to do something for me."

The warrior's ears perked up. "Anything you want, just tell me and I'll do it."

Sootfur suddenly stepped between his siblings, just as Sorreltail opened her mouth to speak. "I hate to interrupt, Sorreltail, but it is time for Rainwhisker to return to ThunderClan," he meowed calmly. "Rainwhisker, you need to go back. They are all waiting for you."

The gray warrior tried to protest, but felt the stars spinning around him as his siblings and Sorreltail's kits began to fade. As his vision went black, he heard his sister's pleading mew.

"Take care of him for me."

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**So I'm sure you all know where this is going. I'm sorry this chapter was so short. Please review!**


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